Many hospital and medical centers are now rationing certain drugs, and are at times forced to buy medications from third-party distributors who systematically increase the price. The alarming economic and health consequences of this led President Obama to sign an executive order strengthening notification requirements by drug manufacturers to the FDA when a potential shortage is looming. Drug manufacturers are not required to report the reasons for a shortage unless they are the sole producer of a medication. So now the government is attempting to tackle the issue head-on.